My 12 Months Old Baby Boy Is Underweight and Has No Appetite

I would probably stop adding the nesquik. its just extra sugar.
A full spoon of butter in each meal? Why? Did your dr. tell you to do that? Young kids don't need butter.

For me a typical day when my kids were around 1y was
Breakfast (between 6a and 8a depending on the day)
- cheerios
- rice cereal with fruit or french toast sticks (depending on # of teeth)
- bottle of milk to wash it down

Snack (around 10a maybe)
- cheerios/ crackers / cookie / fruit
- drink of milk or juice

Lunch (around 12:30p - 2p depending)
- 1 jar stage 3 meat/veggies; 1 jar fruit or fresh fruit
or
- cheese / pasta / meat sticks / fries / peas / cooked carrots
- milk or juice to wash down

Snack (around 4p if not napping)

Dinner (around 6p)
- 1 jar stage 3 meat/veggies; 1 jar fruit or fresh fruit
or
- cheese / pasta / meat sticks / fries / peas / cooked carrots
or
- food of my plate depending on what it was
- milk or juice to wash down

Try to hold the milk until the end of the meal so that he doesn't fill up on just the milk.
Try increasing his activities - tummy time, crawling, scooting, etc. If he doesn't move around alot, then he won't burn calories, and won't be hungry for a few hours (similar to what you mention).

Talk to your pediatrician. Cut out the nesquick cause junk food is not the right way to help your child gain wait. If your pediatrician isn't worried, then just make healthy food available at all times and encourage. Don't punish.

I don't know if there is anything like a pediatric nutritionist, but your doc should be able to help you with healthy recommendations. Good luck!

My 12 month old just hit the 18 lbs mark - her dr was not at all concerned for her. She hit all her milestones and for the most part is staying on her curve. This is why we call her our Peanut - she is just a small kid.

Has your ped expressed concern?

I would feed him what you guys are eating and just let it be. It seems like your are feeding him a lot of fat, but not really any nutrient. Good luck

My daughter just turned 2 and only weighs 22 lbs. The pediatrician is not concerned as she is also (like Sam I Am) hitting all of her milestones and is healthy, just itty bitty. I would speak with your ped about the types of foods you are feeding him. Focus on veggies, fruits, pastas, that type of thing. Less on sugar or fats, or you may run the risk of that being the only thing he likes, which could be a problem later.
Good Luck!

you should look into feeding therapy..my brother and sister in law have a 17 month old with no appetite..his weight and height are fine but their lives revolve around feeding him..there was a post on here today..another mom has her toddler in feeding therapy..also you should see a pediatric gi doc..good luck with your little muffin!!

Most likely he cannot digest the milk protein called casein and this makes his whole gut inflammed. Take him to Dr. Udell in Weston to help get his gut on the right track and prevent further damage or delays. For now take him off all dairy/soy and substitute with almond or rice milk. It sounds like most of his diet is dairy and this could be making him very sick.

my daughter weighed 17 pounds at 1 year. and she was 7 pounds when she was born. so your son is small but not super small.

try giving him small pieces of table food. canned veggies cut up. canned fruit cut up. rice small bits of meat. at 12 month he should be moving toward eating table food and off baby food. he might like cheerios or gold fish crakcers..

Who told you to feed your child all that processed sugar? Butter I get, but if you are feeding your child all those calories and they are still not growing you need to get a doctor to look into a food intolerance. My son loved his milk, but was unable to digest it and until we figured that out, didn't gain any weight or grow! Now he is 18 months and went from wearing a preemie size oneies to a 12 month one in 3 months time! (do you know how unreal it is to have a baby that wears preemie sizes and looks like a preemie talking and walking is? It is disturbing...) Not saying that is what is going on here, but with all those calories he should be doing something and he isn't.

I question the sugar intake because they are finding evidence that processed sugar in childhood and infant hood is linked to diabetic problems and heart attacks later in life.

I would cut out the sugar and butter. Kids do need fat for healthy brain development, but he's getting whole milk. I would also try giving him homemade food with no seasoning. Sweet potatoes, steamed carrots, organic applesauce, he can probably eat broccoli if it's soft, ripe pears and bananas are good, frozen blueberries (thawed) go over well. And, yes, goldfish, cheerios, even oyster crackers can be fun for them. Try healthy dips.

Sit down to eat with him. He may want to try stuff on your plate.

Mainly, make mealtime a happy thing. Don't force him to do anything! You can decide what you offer; they decide what they eat. Most toddlers eat less than they did as babies. And, left alone, they'll eat a balanced diet over 2-3 days, not at one meal. Remember, they don't have hang-ups yet, so they'll eat what they want/need.

A bite or two at a meal is FINE. Some kids are just on the lean side, like my daughter who was "failure to thrive" until I changed pediatricians. My current pediatrician tracks her growth relative to her previous ages NOT compared to averages. As long as she hits milestones, we're good.

HTH!

You may want to get the opinion of another pediatrician. Even if you like yours. I can't believe giving a spoonful of butter with each meal. Try some of the suggestions on meals that have been given on here and try to offer healthy snacks in between meals when you can. Back in the day I had my kids we gave much more food much earlier and kids ate more of what we ate, like ice cream, etc, but now they say it's not good. I'd find a healthier fat to give than ice cream. Let him feed himself if he can or while he tries then you feed him. My first baby was a preemie and only 4lbs. 10 oz. but he very soon caught up. We have a set of twin grandsons and they were very slow gaining, still are not heavy at all, but they just don't eat like some kids and are healthy and doing all the things they should be so that's the main thing to check out is if your son is up to where he should be. Does he eat cheerios well? How much pediasure is he getting? Maybe get a second opinion.

Has the doctor/pediatrician expressed concerns? Is your baby hitting his milestones? Make sure you talk to your doctor so you are going in the right direction.

For our family our pediatrician cautioned us against sweets (cookies, ice creams, juices) simply because on a fundamental level they are more appealing. He suggested we offer fruits and veggies instead of the other. For breakfast we feed ours a bottle, fruit and cereal. For lunch and dinner we offer more fruit and a veggie. Then we offer pasta and/or chicken. Our little one eats best when he self feeds but he does get easily distracted. We also offer him whatever we are eating within reason. For snacks we offer puffs and fruit.

Try not to be fixated on what size your baby was at birth. As a mom you know all too well each day is a new day. Today he needs to be judged against his current milestones. Like Sam I am mentioned with hers as an example you might have a small baby or yours could just be a late bloomer. Good luck.